


A Different Kind of Family

by GalacticallyNonbinary



Category: Sanders Sides, Thomas Sanders
Genre: Based on the Penumbra Podcast, M/M, Multi, Totally, another one based on a podcast, cus thats what e v e r y o n e wants
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-28
Updated: 2017-06-28
Packaged: 2018-11-20 14:07:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,190
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11337063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalacticallyNonbinary/pseuds/GalacticallyNonbinary
Summary: Logan is going to get married, and move with his husband, Roman, to a small town out west. But when he meets a bandit and the bandit's 'partner,' things end up a little differently than expected





	1. A Stranger

**Author's Note:**

> I'm too obsessed with podcasts. This is based on The Penumbra Podcast, but you definitely don't need to listen to that to read this. I still highly recommend it though, it's So Incredibly Gay

Logan sighed as he watched the endless plains roll by outside of the dusty train windows. Miles and miles and miles of nothing more than empty desert.

_Marriage is good,_

he reminded himself.

_You’re getting married to a wonderful man who makes good money from being a sheriff. You will adopt children, and start a family out here. That’s how you become happy._

And yet, he wasn’t so sure. He saw his fiancée next to him on the train, snoring in his sleep. He was dressed in layers upon layers of clothes that he fussed over every day. This emphasized just how plain Logan’s shirt, jeans and tie were. Plenty of people in the train car wore cowboy-style outfits, and Logan hoped that he would never have to wear one. His thoughts began to circle back to where they had started. Moving to the empty Wild West, raising a family with a husband, was this all that life had to offer? It might be nice, but he almost felt as if something was missing. An announcement came from the front of the carriage.

“Headin’ to Crossroads in one hour folks, one hour.”

Logan turned to his fiancé.

“That’s our stop, right Roman?”

Logan’s fiancé continued to snore, which did nothing to help Logan’s uneasiness. Just then, a man dressed in cowboy gear approached Logan and his sleeping fiancé. This man’s outfit was remarkably different from most others. His clothing was entirely black, with dark grey detailing, and his hat fell over his face, obscuring most of his features. He looked down at Logan and spoke in a quiet but clear voice.

“You’re going to Crossroads?”

“Uh, yes, yes I am,”

Logan stammered, disliking social interaction with strangers, especially those who were admittedly quite intimidating.

“You got some business in town?”

“My fiancé just got a job as the sheriff there.”

“Well, isn’t that nice.”

The man’s dark tone and expression betrayed his words. Looking down at Roman’s sleeping form, he patted the man’s shoulder, and then when Roman continued to snore, he smirked.

“Your husband sure is tired, isn’t he?”

“Fiancé,”

Logan corrected. And then he asked,

“Do you live in Crossroads?”

“I live…nearby.”

The man’s suspicious answer made Logan more than a little curious, but this was someone that Logan didn’t want to provoke, so he just asked,

“Do you know if there’s an opening at the school there?”

The man suddenly perked up the slightest bit, and Logan could tell that his interest was piqued.

“Why, are you a teacher?”

“Yes…”

“Any good?”

Logan was beginning to become flustered by all of the questions, and quickly snapped,

“Of course I am!"

“Well, with a temper like that, I might doubt your methods.”

“You pompous- for your information, I taught at Groverfield Primary for over five years before now. And the first thing I’ll teach the children in Crossroads is manners, so they don’t end up as rude and spiteful as you.”

The stranger laughed at Logan’s sudden outburst, but through his laughter managed to say,

“Quite a record, sir. Sorry to trouble you.”

The man dressed in all black turned away before adding,

“See you again soon.”

Logan, feeling a blush creep onto his cheeks cried out,

“You’ll see that you don’t!”

He looked over at the still snoring Roman and sighed. Logan was about to read one of the books he had brought with him, when he felt the train slow, and heard the wheels squeal to a halt.

“What in the world...we’re not in Crossroads yet are we?”

Before he could wonder any more, he was shocked by the sharp sound of gunfire and screams from the front of the train.

“Roman! Roman, wake up! Gunshots!”

Roman continued to snore, and Logan began to panic.

“For god’s sakes Roman, get up! There’s gunfire on the train!”

Thinking quickly, he slapped a hand across Roman’s face, lightly, but enough to wake him up. Then, they saw a figure appear in the front of the carriage. The man that had been talking to Logan moments ago stood, holding a gun confidently in his hand.

“Good afternoon. This is a stick-up, plain and simple.”

  
Small gasps echoed through the train car, and Logan’s eyes widened in alarm.

“Play nice, and nobody gets hurt.”

Roman, still not fully awake, blinked and turned to Logan.

“Did you say something dear?”

Logan groaned.

“I said get up Roman, we’re getting robbed!”

The bandit paced the narrow aisle, holding open a large black bag.

“Please hand over your valuable items. Watches, rings, bracelets, necklaces.”

People reluctantly placed their belongings in the bag as Roman, who was slowly putting the pieces together, glanced over at his fiancé.

“We’re being robbed, Logan!”

Logan rolled his eyes.

“So do something!”

Roman stood up confidently.

“No need to worry folks, I’ll handle this situation-“

The bandit held up a hand to stop him.

“If you were planning on making yourself the hero, I’d recommend you sit back down, because this gun I’m holding came straight from your belt.”

Roman slowly looked down, and saw that, indeed, his gun was missing. Logan put his head in his hands, as he realized that the man must’ve taken it when he went over to talk to Logan. That’s probably why he wanted to talk in the first place.

“You aren’t going to get away with this! The first thing I’m going to do when I’m sheriff is gather up my men and…”

The bandit cocked his gun, and aimed it straight for Roman’s head.

“Catch my meaning, sheriff?”

“This isn’t the end of-“

Logan grabbed his hand and yanked him back into his seat. The bandit continued pacing the aisle, collecting passengers’ precious items. Then, Logan’s attention was grabbed by a small boy running down the train car. He was chasing a small rubber ball that he had dropped.

“Roman! That little boy, he’s headed right for the bandit!”

“We can’t do anything, Logan…”

“But-“

“Just sit still. We’ll catch this guy once I get settled in town.”

Logan couldn’t believe what Roman was saying. He turned to see the bandit leaning down to pick up the ball that was still rolling down the aisle.

“What do we have here?”

The boy ran up to the bandit, a toothy grin showing his obliviousness to the situation around him.

“Roman, he’s going to kill that boy.”

“Hush, Logan. If I do anything now, he could shoot everyone in the whole carriage!”

Logan watched as the bandit reached into his bag, and muttered,

“Let’s see if I’ve got a little something for you…”

He couldn’t stand it. Ignoring Roman’s protests, he stood up and called,

“Don’t you dare raise a finger to that kid! If you do, I will not hesitate to beat you with your own gun!”

Logan hoped that the bandit didn’t notice the quaver in his voice or how his hands were shaking. It was most certainly an empty threat, Logan would absolutely lose in any kind of physical struggle, but would the bandit back down? Logan slowly climbed out of his seat and walked down the aisle to the little boy, maintaining eye contact with the bandit the entire time. Once he stood in between the boy and the bandit, he took the ball from the bandit and handed it to the little boy, saying,

“You go run back to your seat.”

The boy, still blissfully unaware of the peril he was in, happily skipped back to his seat. Logan turned to the bandit, still quaking in fear, but refusing to let his face show it.

“So, any valuables in the bag, is that right?”

The bandit nodded, then looked up at Logan, a strange emotion alighting on his face.

“Did you know that boy before today?”

Logan scoffed as he removed his watch.

“I don’t see why it matters.”

“It matters because the person with the gun gets their questions answered.”

Roman stood up in the aisle, finally deciding to take a stand, and glared at the bandit.

“Don’t you lay a hand on him you filthy-“

For the second time in the past few minutes, the bandit raised his gun to Roman’s head. He then nonchalantly turned back to Logan and asked,

“You were saying?”

Logan saw his fiancé standing still in fear and anger, and sighed.

“No, I did not know him.”

“Why did you do all that for him then? I could’ve shot you.”

“I…well I couldn’t let you murder a child.”

The bandit paused, as if he was considering something. He then turned to Roman, who was still frozen in place, staring at the gun pointed at him.

“I’ll make you a deal, sheriff. You and all the other passengers get this bag full of your precious belongings back, and Logan comes with me.”

Both Roman and Logan shouted their disagreements, and the other passengers began to chime in as well, until the bandit fired a shot through a window. At the sound of shattering glass, the train became deathly quiet. The bandit tossed the bag to Roman, and led Logan out of the train, pressing the gun into his back.

“I’ll save you Logan! That’s the first thing I’ll do, I promise you!”

Logan tried to call back to his fiancé, but he was shoved out of the train before he could respond. Two brown horses, both with saddles, stood in the desert sands next to the train. Atop of one was a man, who held the reigns to both horses. Upon seeing Logan and the bandit, he gave them both a warm smile. Logan had to admit that the smile was strangely comforting.

“Anx, who’s this?”

“This is Logan. Wanted to be a schoolteacher in town.”

“Anx?”

Logan questioned.

“Short for Anxiety.”

And then when Logan gave him a judgmental look, he added,

“You’ve got to have a nick name if you want to be a bandit around here.”

The man on the horse turned his bright face to the rather overwhelmed Logan.

“Well nice to meet you Logan! I’m Patton, Anx’s partner.”

Logan looked at the two of them, frowning in thought.

“Partners in crime, or…partners…as in…”

Instead of an answer, Patton just nodded at Logan and laughed, a sweet, genuine laugh that would’ve made Logan smile under different circumstances. Then, with a swift but gentle kick, he rode off on his horse. Anxiety smirked.

“We’d better catch up to him. C’mon, up onto the horse you go.”

Logan stared at the stirrups and saddle, and then turned to Anxiety, bewildered.

“What, don’t tell me you’ve never ridden a horse? You’ve got a lot to learn.”

Anxiety hoisted himself up onto the horse naturally, as if it was the easiest thing in the world. He then reached out a hand to Logan, who reluctantly let Anxiety pull him up into the saddle. He was surprisingly strong. Logan felt Anxiety’s arms wrap around him, and flinched slightly at the contact.

“Sorry for being so close, just making sure that you don’t, y’know, fall off and die.”

He was very close indeed, as he spoke, Logan could feel warm breath on the back of his neck. With a slight kick, the two of them rode off, following Patton, who was now merely a speck in the distance. It seemed like they could have been riding for days, but it truly was only just over an hour when they arrived at a large ranch house. Patton was putting his horse back in the barn as Anxiety and Logan arrived. Anxiety swung himself off of the horse in a single, fluid motion.

“Put her in the stall for me Pat, thanks.”

After Patton gave him a small peck on the cheek, Anxiety headed into the house. Patton then looked up at Logan, who still sat on the horse.

“Well, I would recommend you come down from there, or you’ll spend the night in the stables, and I don’t think that would be very comfortable.”

And then, with a slight giggle, he added,

"Talk about hitting the hay!”

Logan’s slightly annoyed face made Patton laugh even harder as he walked to the side of the horse.

“Really though, you do need to get down.”

The serious man sat still, unmoving, and refusing to look at the ground below him.

“I…don’t think I can do that without injury.”

“Your first time on a horse, huh? Well that’s okay, just hop down! I’ll catch you!”

Patton held his arms outstretched, and Logan just frowned.

"Don’t you trust me?”

Logan looked at him incredulously.

“Well, given that your ‘partner’ just kidnapped me and rode off with me to a ranch god knows where, I can say that no, Patton, no I do not trust you.”

Seeing Patton’s hurt expression, Logan regretted his words, but was most certainly not going to apologize to a criminal.

“Logan, you need to get down one way or another. I know you don’t trust me, but you have to act like you do, just for this moment.”

Logan took a shaky breath, looked at the ground that seemed miles away, closed his eyes, and let himself fall into Patton’s waiting arms. He felt a strong grip wrap around him, and opened his eyes to see Patton’s grinning face. The older man held him bridal style, and carefully placed him on his feet.

“Now, was that so hard? Go ahead into the house, I’ll be there in just a minute.”

He really would’ve rather stayed with Patton, as his demeanor was far sweeter than Anxiety’s, but Logan walked out of the barn in the same direction Anxiety had, and entered the house he saw in front of him.

In the front room was a circular wooden table where Anxiety sat, seemingly pondering something. Logan turned, and saw that the sink was overflowing with dishes, far more than two men would ever need. This certainly was curious, but decided not to ask about it. He did, however, ask about something that had been tugging at the back of his mind for a while.

“You mentioned that Anxiety was your nickname, then what’s your real name?”

The second the words left his mouth, Logan wished they hadn’t. Anxiety fixed him with a cold glare, and spoke in a slow, firm voice.

“To you, and everyone else, my name is Anxiety. I don’t have to tell you my real name.”

Logan gulped, and stood in a heavy silence, waiting for Patton to arrive. And then he realized something that should’ve been painfully obvious.

“Well, I could run away, right now. Right out that door!”

Instead of the angry reaction Logan had expected, Anxiety shrugged.

“Do as you like. But it’s getting dark, and I know that you don’t know the way back to town. Oh, and there are things out there at night. Spiders, and snakes, and-“

He was interrupted by a long howl from a coyote outside.

“And coyotes…”

Logan realized that he was right. On the ride to the house he hadn’t seen a single building and he had no idea what direction the town was in. 

“You can leave in the morning if you want though. We’ll give you a horse, a map, and a compass and send you ahead on your way.”

“Why did you even want me then, if you're so willing to set me free?”

Before Anxiety had a chance to answer, the door swung open, and both men turned to see Patton frowning at the dishes in the sink.

“Anxiety! I told you to wash those dishes before you left this morning.”

“But I-“

“No buts! Wash the dishes.”

It was rather shocking to see such a dark and brooding man follow the instructions of such a kind and loving one. They were opposites, just like…himself and Roman. He hadn’t let his thoughts linger on his fiancé for long since he had left the train, but now… And to think that earlier the same day all he was worried about was the marriage! Logan was startled out of his thoughts by a soft hand on his shoulder.

“You in there, teach? I was going to make some coffee for myself and hot chocolate for Anx, do you want anything?”

Why was he so nice? They had basically kidnapped him, and yet were treating him with kindness and hospitality. Anxiety butted into their conversation.

"He seems like a tea guy to me.”

Logan was tempted to argue simply for the sake of arguing, but was too overwhelmed and tired to do much more than nod and say,

“Tea would be nice, thank you.”

Patton led him to a soft armchair, and gave him a warm blanket.

“Now, just wait for the drinks to be done. Once they are, I’ll show you to your room.”

Logan gave a sleepy nod as he curled up into the armchair and let himself get lost in his thoughts. A few minutes later, Patton handed him a warm cup of tea, and helped him to his feet. Patton picked up that blanket that had fallen to the floor when Logan stood up, and wrapped it around the man’s shoulders, earning no protest from Logan. As a sleepy Logan was being tucked into his bed, his fiancé was in the sheriff’s office of Crossroads, sleep not even an option in his mind.

Roman talked to anyone and everyone, trying to figure out where to find the man who had taken his fiancé. After a few hours, the only thing he had discovered that the man’s name, or at least his nickname, was Anxiety. Most of his men headed home to their spouses for the night, but Roman knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep without Logan in the bed next to him. After borrowing a horse and a gun, he headed out to look for clues.

Logan tossed and turned in his sleep, missing the familiar feeling of Roman’s arms wrapped around him. Eventually, he gave up attempting to sleep, and sat on his bed, pondering his predicament. He heard footsteps out in the hall, and assumed it was either Patton or Anxiety. The footsteps stopped outside of his door, and he inhaled sharply as the handle turned and the door swung open. Logan didn’t see the person at his door at first. That was, until he looked down. A small boy whose head just barely reached the door handle stared at Logan in curiosity.

“Sir, do you know where Patton is? I’ve been looking for him everywhere and I can’t find him.”

The young boy had a hopeful sparkle in his eye, and reminded Logan of the boy on the train. Logan’s head was whirring, trying to put the pieces together. He decided to start with a simple question.

“What’s your name?”

“Oh, Imaj, sir.”

Logan spoke slowly and carefully, trying to figure out what was happening.

“Imaj, what is a boy like you doing in the home of a bandit?”

“Bandit? I don’t know any bandits sir. All of us are just here with Mister Patton and with Anxiety.”

How could the child not know that Anxiety was a bandit? And wait, did he say…

“…us?”

The boy nodded.

“All us kids! Me, Thomas, Joan, Talyn, Valerie, and a bunch more. I don’t really know how to count, so I don’t know exactly how many, but there’s a lot of us.”

“Where are all of your parents?”

Logan asked, becoming incredibly concerned.

“Oh, dead sir. Horrible disease went through Crossroads a few years ago. Most died before we were even a year old, so none of us are too sad about it.”

Logan stared at the young boy in disbelief. What would even be the point of kidnapping an orphan? You couldn’t get any ransom- Imaj interrupted Logan’s thoughts with a quiet remark.

“Can I sleep in your bed tonight sir? They were all telling ghost stories tonight, and I’ve got awful nightmares. Anxiety never lets me sleep in his and Patton’s bed and I-“

The small boy started trembling as he rambled, and Logan sighed before motioning him to climb onto the bed. Logan decided to ask Imaj a few questions to search for any information.

“Anxiety and Patton…do they take good care of you?”

“Well, it’s mostly Patton who takes care of us, but Anxiety will come back once a month with clothes and food and toys for us, and both of them are very kind to us. Oh, he also brings books, I suppose.”

“You suppose?”

“I suppose they’re books. I can’t read them though…”

Logan frowned, thinking about all of this, and when he turned to ask the boy another question, he heard loud snoring next to him. He smiled, just the smallest bit, and let himself fall into a deep sleep.

_The children and the criminals are their own type of family, I suppose._


	2. A Criminal?

The next morning, Logan was awakened by sun streaming through the window and dancing across his face. He looked over, and noticed that Imaj had left the bed. As he sat up, Logan noticed the rich scent of bacon and eggs wafting through the hall. So what if the boy had said they take good care of him? They were bandits and kidnappers, and Logan couldn’t stand for it. He walked into the kitchen, arms crossed and a scowl across his face. Anxiety was the first to notice him, and he couldn’t help but laugh at the expression on Logan’s face. At the sound of Anxiety’s laughter, Patton turned around from the stove where he was cooking the food, and smiled at Logan.

"Hello there, sleepyhead. How much do you want?”

He gestured to the sizzling bacon. Logan could’ve eaten it all, it smelled so good…but no. They were criminals.

“None! I am not going to eat that filthy food.”

“Aw, c’mon Logan, I can hear your stomach growling from all the way over here. Have a seat at the table."

Pouting, Logan slumped into a chair across the table from Anxiety, who was still laughing. A few moments later, a plate was placed in front of Logan, full of bacon and eggs. Patton handed him a fork and a knife, and joined the other two at the table. Logan wanted so badly to prove his point, to not eat their food, but it smelled so good and he was so hungry… Patton giggled.

“That ‘filthy food’ sure is disappearing fast.”

Logan ignored him and continued to eat the delicious meal. After most of it was gone from his plate, he looked up and glared at the both of them, remembering to be angry with them.

“Well, I can’t believe you!”

Patton cocked his head at Logan.

“What do you mean?”

“You know perfectly well what I mean! The children!”

Neither man was any bit surprised, and Anxiety just frowned and asked,

“Did one of them break something?”

“You kidnapped these children and are keeping them here like some villain in a fairy tale!”

“I’m not the villain,” Anxiety remarked. Patton smiled, and replied, “Of course you’re not!”

Logan ignored them both, and continued to talk.

“Imaj came into my room as pale as a sheet last night, he was so scared. And he can’t read or count at all! I can’t believe you would do that to a child. To survive when they’re older, they need to be taught!”

Anxiety pounded his fist on the table.

“Don’t you think I know that?!”

Logan recoiled in fear as Anxiety continued.

“In all your experience with kids, have you ever seen what happens to the orphans? Nearest orphanage is four states east, they don’t get sent there. Around here, neighbors take them in. Farm labor’s a lot of work, and it’s expensive. Kids aren’t expensive. Doesn’t even cost anything to replace them.”

Logan’s eyes were wide with concern as he looked at Anxiety.

“Some of them don’t even get that luxury,”

Patton added quietly.

“End up on the streets as beggars. Or worse.”

“Worse?”

Logan questioned.

Both men avoided the question and Logan’s gaze. Looking at the expressions of the two, Logan saw them differently. As…people.

_No. They’re criminals._

“Well, I understand what you’re saying, but they need to learn!”

Patton nodded.

“I agree wholeheartedly. If only someone would do them the honor…”

Both Anxiety’s and Patton’s eyes were fixed on him.

“…oh…no! I have a fiancé waiting for me! I have a life to return to!”

Patton sighed, and walked over to a nearby bookshelf, grabbing a few items before returning to the table. He slid them over next to Logan’s now empty plate. Logan looked down and saw a small rusty compass and a tattered but still readable map. There was a red line that went through the map, pointing out landmarks along the way.

“I can help you get saddled up, but we need to stay home with the kids. It isn’t too hard to control a docile horse, especially not ours. Just release him once you get into town, and he’ll find his way back.”

“I…thank you.”

He started to stand up, but Anxiety’s voice made him pause.

“Well, goodbye I suppose. I guess the kids might be a bit disappointed though. I might’ve told some of the little ones that you’d read them a story this morning.”

Logan glared at him.

“Well, tell them that the story’s been cancelled!”

Anxiety smirked.

“Well, you see…”

At that moment, a door down the hall opened, and a large group of small children, led by Imaj, walked out.

“That’s him!”

Logan saw their hopeful faces, and looked back and Anxiety and Patton’s own smiles, and sighed. Imaj spoke up.

“C’mon sir, tell us a story!”

Logan reluctantly took a children’s book off of the shelf, and settled into the cozy armchair as the children gathered around his feet. He opened the book, and began to read to them.

Roman was still searching for hints, half asleep on the horse he had borrowed. Then, he spotted them. About an hour outside of town, where they had been stopped the day before, tracks were easily visible in the desert sands. He perked up, and led his horse to follow the tracks across the plains, his hand on the borrowed gun.

Around midday, Roman was still slowly following the tracks, and Logan had read almost all of the children’s books on the shelf to the excited kids. At the end of the tenth one, a boy who he had learned was named ‘Thomas’ spoke up.

“If you know how to read, do you know how to count?”

All of the kids were intrigued by Thomas’ question, and looked at Logan hopefully.

“Yes, yes I do.”

They all gave him wide smiles, and Thomas asked,

“Could you please teach us?”

Patton walked over, smiling at the group of children.

“I’m sure he could later, but I do think it’s time for lunch.”

The children seemed slightly disappointed, but were excited to dig into the grilled cheese sandwiches Patton had made. As they did, Logan realized how long he had stayed, and talked to Patton in a low voice.

“I can’t teach them counting! I have to leave, I have other responsibilities! My fiancé, I-“

Patton nodded, sadly but knowingly, and asked,

“Could you at least eat some lunch first? I don't want you leaving on an empty stomach.”

Logan reluctantly took the sandwich Patton handed him, both men sitting to join Anxiety at the table.

“Earlier, you said some of the orphans end up worse than beggars, and I’ve been thinking…”

Logan trailed off, looking at them. Anxiety frowned at him.

“Just go ahead and say it.”

“You were both orphans, weren’t you? But neighbors didn’t take you in…”

Anxiety shook his head.

“Nope. We weren’t that lucky. We met as beggars on the streets. Realized it was easier to survive if you took what you wanted instead of asking.”

“That’s...that’s still no excuse for stealing. There’s got to be something else you could do to take care of the children. You’re good with your horses, maybe you could work in a rodeo?”

Patton laughed.

“What, Anxiety as a rodeo clown? I’d certainly pay to see that.”

Logan shook his head. “He could be the rodeo hero.”

Patton gave the smallest of smiles, but Anxiety just frowned.

“Everyone around here knows us as bandits, we could never get a job from them. Besides, the hero? I highly doubt I could ever…”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” 

Logan remarked quietly.

“You’re not as bad as you say.”

Anxiety looked up and met Logan’s eyes. Their hands touched from across the table for a few moments, until Logan noticed and recoiled from the touch.

“I…don’t touch me!”

Anxiety and Patton frowned at each other.

“Sorry, I guess I misread the situation.”

“You certainly did!”

“I do apologize, only-“

“I cannot believe that you would possibly think that…you…”

Anxiety smirked at the flustered Logan.

“As I was saying, I apologize, only you’re taking an awful lot of noise to deliver a simple message.”

Logan’s face was bright red, and he stood up from the table and announced that he was leaving.

“If I never see the two of you again it will be too soon you lowdown, dirty, rotten, thieving-“

A gunshot shattered a large window. All of the children raced down the hall and back into their room. Anxiety and Patton ducked under the kitchen table, pulling Logan with them.

“Anxiety! Patton! Are you alright?”

Any ounce of anger he had only moments ago was gone, replaced with concern and fear. A voice sounded from outside.

“Bandit? Are you in there? Show yourself! You better not hurt Logan!”

Anxiety and Patton looked at Logan, who recognized the voice immediately.

“It’s Roman…”

Anxiety scowled at him.

“Your fiancé makes it a habit of shooting at you?”

Logan started to stand up.

"I can go and explain it all to him, and it’ll all be alright.”

Anxiety and Patton grabbed him before he could make himself visible.

“The man’s got a gun, Logan. Ours, or at least, the one I stole from him, is out of bullets,”

Anxiety hissed.

“He won’t shoot me!”

"He seems to have an itchy trigger finger. Any movement from in here, who knows what he’ll do.”

Logan took a deep breath, and then shook his head at both of them. In a calm but firm voice, he announced,

“Roman. It’s me.”

“Logan! Are you hurt?!”

Roman’s voice was filled concern for his fiancé.

“No, I'm fine. Roman, I’m standing up. Don’t shoot.”

Slowly, Logan climbed out from under the table and stood up. Outside of the large window that had been shattered, Roman sat on his horse. When he saw the face of his fiancé, Roman broke into a relieved smile, and jumped off of his horse. The normally graceful and elegant Roman was now sleep deprived, and climbing through the window towards Logan. Luckily, he was able to avoid being cut by the sharp glass on the edge of the window frame. Logan couldn’t help but let out a little laugh at the sight of his half asleep fiancé clambering towards him. In only a few moments, Roman’s arms were wrapped around Logan’s waist. Tears were filling his eyes as he held on so tight that Logan could barely breathe. Roman pressed his lips to Logan’s, and embraced him. Still in Logan’s arms, Roman pulled back for a moment and pulled out his gun.

“Where is the bandit?”

Logan pulled Roman’s hand that held the gun down.

“Don’t hurt them, Roman.”

“Them?”

“Guys, come on out.”

Slowly, Anxiety and Patton climbed out from under the table. Roman glared at Anxiety.

“How dare you take Logan from me. How dare you, you horrible, rotten criminal!”

Then, all four of them turned at the sound of a door opening in the hallway. The children poked their heads out, worried and curious. Roman gasped and rushed over to them.

“Did you kidnap these poor defenseless children?!”

He knelt down to the smallest one, who looked up at him, confused.

“What is your name, young child?”

“I’m Talyn,”

They replied with a smile, enjoying the excitement of the day.

“You have taken Talyn and these other children from their homes! I cannot believe you!”

Logan walked over and wrapped an arm around Roman.

“Roman…these children are orphans…”

Through the next few minutes, after escorting the children back into their room, Logan calmly explained to Roman what Patton and Anxiety had explained that morning. He even explained that he had not been truly captured, and had been free to leave that morning. Roman was still unsettled at the thought of criminals. He turned to Anxiety and said,

“You’re still a criminal! A thief! You’re evil!”

“I’m not the villain!”

"Well, you’re the one who steals to make a living! That certainly sounds like villainy to me! You could be something else, do something else, get a job to support the children!”

“Everyone knows that we’re bandits! We couldn’t ever get a job, we’ve sealed our fate!”

Roman turned to Logan, who stood in the middle of himself and Anxiety, and then to Patton, who stood next to Anxiety, gripping his hand. Finally he turned back to Anxiety, and muttered,

“But I haven’t…”

Logan flashed him a confused look as he continued.

“There is another town north of here, correct?”

Patton nodded.

“I could quit my job as sheriff of Crossroads, so I don’t have to chase you, and enter rodeos there for money to help you.”

The other three were incredibly confused. Logan grabbed his hand.

“Roman, why are you…”

“You seem to trust them, or at least you don’t distrust them. And I trust you. And you definitely care for those kids. So, I will help you. All of you.”

Patton smiled at Roman, and even Anxiety looked hopeful. Logan walked over to him.

“You would really quit your job to help them?”

“Like I said, I trust you. I would do anything for you, you know I would Logan.”

They leaned in and shared a caring kiss. Patton clapped happily.

“Aw, how cute. Anxiety!”

“Wha…I…uh…”

Anxiety stammered as Patton giggled and kissed him. As Logan looked at the three men around him, he grinned. This was certainly going to make life interesting.

That night, Logan was again reading to the kids, but this time Roman was helping him, reading the part of the hero and acting out the story. The kids were captivated by the stories, and even Patton and Anxiety enjoyed watching them.

_Maybe this could be a family._


	3. Something More...

Months later, Roman was earning enough money for all of them, and the kids loved learning from Logan. They were all happy, or at least seemed it. One night, Roman and Logan lay awake in their bed. Roman had been pondering something for a while, and knew that he needed to talk to Logan about it.

“Logan? Can you be honest with me?”

“Of course. What would you like to know?”

Roman took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, grateful for the cover of darkness in the room.

“Do you have feelings for them?”

Without any context, Logan knew exactly what Roman was talking about. He had never been good with emotions, had never wanted to talk about this, especially not with Roman. Of course, he loved Roman, loved his dramatic flair and caring nature and strong, safe attitude. But when Patton giggled, or when Anxiety smirked at him, he felt his heart speed up, the world seemed to slow. It was love, wasn’t it? It was all so confusing. Roman reached for Logan’s hand in the silence.

“I…maybe I do…it’s all incredibly complicated…”

“It’s alright if you do.”

Logan looked over at Roman, even though he was barely able to make out any expressions in the dark. Was he being serious?

“You can love me, and I can love you,”

Roman leaned in and pressed a kiss to Logan’s forehead.

“And we can both love both of them. It’s certainly going to be a lot of communication and emotions-“ 

Logan groaned at that, and Roman laughed.

“Anxiety would have trouble with it too. Maybe Patton and I could teach the two of you.”

After the conversation carried on for a bit longer, the two decided to talk to Anxiety and Patton. It was a long talk, full of excitement, nerves, complicated emotions, and, at the end, a lot of flirting. The flirting was mostly courtesy of Roman, no surprise there. Nevertheless, the night ended with the four cuddled together in a pile of blankets and pillows on the floor. Logan felt Patton laying on his chest, Roman's hand holding on tight to his own, and felt Anxiety curled up next to him. In a room just down the hall, they could hear murmurs from the children as they fell asleep.

_Yes._

Logan thought.

_This is most certainly a family._

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter's a lot longer than the other two, but I hope you enjoy the story!


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